PETALING JAYA: Malaysia wants to work together with the Central American Commission of Maritime Transport (Cocatram) to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships, says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.

       The Transport Minister also said that Malaysia would also like to collaborate with the grouping on the control of marine autonomous surface ships in ports.

       "We have much to learn from each other in Maritime issues," Dr Wee said in a Facebook post Thursday (Dec 9) night.

       Cocatram consists of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

       Dr Wee held a bilateral meeting with the Cocatram secretariat on the sidelines of the 32nd International Maritime Organisation (IMO) assembly earlier Thursday.

       The secretariat was represented by Directorate of Seafarers general director Capt Juan E. Maltez, Panama's ambassador to the United Kingdom Natalia Royo and the ambassador to the permanent mission to the IMO Luis Bernal Gonzalez.

       "Malaysia proposed to work with the Caribbean countries on several issues under the IMO Internal Technical Cooperation Programme," Dr Wee said.

       The MCA president added that Panama had also recognised Malaysia's efforts to protect seafarers, local and foreign, and pledged to have further exchanges of knowledge in related maritime fields.